You will be booked into jail after an arrest for committing a crime. Criminal cases. In California, criminal cases take a while to be resolved. Therefore, choosing to remain in jail can cause emotional trauma and distort your normal life. You must post bail to secure a release in a pending criminal case.
The bail money guarantees the court that you will not flee after your release. The easiest and most convenient way to post bail is by presenting the full bail amount to the court clerk. Unfortunately, the high bail amounts in California make it challenging for most defendants to afford cash bail.
For defendants who cannot raise the high bail amounts on short notice, there are other options you can explore, including a bail bond. Bail bond companies post your bail in exchange for a 10% service fee. This lowers your financial burden and makes the process easier for you.
At Justice Bail Bonds, we understand the devastation of watching your loved one sit in jail for lack of bail money. Our Alpine bail bondsmen are available 24/7 to offer the financial assistance and expert guidance you need to navigate the bail process.
An Overview of Bail in California
In California, bail is a monetary commitment to the court before you are released with a pending criminal trial. The primary aim of posting bail is to guarantee the court your return to court when your court proceedings and trial begin.
Bail is not punishment for your criminal conduct. This means you can recover the total amount when the criminal case ends. However, if you do not attend a trial, the court will forfeit the amount you paid. Therefore, the idea of losing bail money motivates many defendants to follow through with their cases.
After your arrest and booking, the court will hold a bail hearing where the judge determines the amount required for bail. A bail hearing begins with checking the base bail amount on the bail schedule. A bail schedule lists all criminal offenses in California and the amount needed for each violation.
If you are arrested on a warrant, you can pay the amount indicated on the schedule. However, for other defendants, the judge may increase or reduce the bail amount based on these factors:
- Circumstances of your crime. The judge will evaluate all the factors in your case when determining your bail. If there are aggravating circumstances in your case, your bail requirement may be higher.
- Criminal history. California law does not show leniency to repeat offenders. The court may order a high bail amount if you have a history of committing serious and violent crimes.
- Flight risk. The main aim of imposing bail before a release is to discourage defendants from fleeing. Therefore, your likelihood of flight could impact the court’s decision on bail. The strength of your community ties will determine whether you will stick around for your trial.
- Your income and resources. You will pay the amount presented to the court for skipping bail. Checking a defendant’s income and resources helps determine if the bail amount required is enough to discourage them from fleeing. A person with a higher income and more resources may need to pay more.
Types of Bail in California
There are several types of bail you can use to secure your loved one’s bail, including the following:
Cash Bail
If you can raise the full bail amount, you can pay it in cash. Posting a cash bail involves pressing the entire amount to the court clerk before your loved one is processed out of jail. Securing your loved one’s release on cash bail is easy and convenient. This is because you will not involve third parties and will deal directly with the court.
However, this type of bail may be unaffordable for all defendants. Instead of using all your money on bail, you can save it to hire a legal team to help you fight your charges. You will be subjected to financial scrutiny when you post cash bail for a significant amount. The law enforcement officers and the court want to ensure you did not obtain the bail money through criminal acts.
Undergoing a financial investigation can stall the bail release process and invade your financial privacy.
Property Bond
You can pledge property to the court if you do not have enough money for cash bail. Instead of liquidating property for cash bail, you can present the property in exchange for a release. If you post a property bond for your loved one’s release, you must prove property ownership. You can do this by presenting the property deed and other documents that can ascertain its ownership.
The court will hold a property bond hearing where you can present this information. If the property you want to use for bail has multiple owners, all individuals whose names appear on the deed must be present at the hearing. A property bond is treated the same as a cash bail. This means the court will lift a lien on the property when a defendant attends their trial and the court case ends.
Bail Bonds
For many defendants, bail bonds are the only option to secure a release for their loved ones from jail. Surety companies provide bail bonds with the help of a bail bondsman. The bail bonds process begins when a defendant is arrested and booked in a jail cell. At this point, you can contact an Alpine bail bonds service for assistance.
Not all defendants will be eligible for bail bonds. Therefore, the surety company will send out a bail bondsman to assess the circumstances of your situation and determine if they can offer assistance. Some factors that the bail bonds service will consider include the defendant’s flight risk and your ability to pay the service fees.
If you meet the eligibility requirements for a bail bond, the surety company will draft an agreement for you. In a bail bonds agreement, the bail bondsman agrees to post your loved one’s bail while you sign to take on these responsibilities:
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Pay the Premium Fee
In exchange for posting your loved one’s bail, you will pay the surety company a 10% premium fee. Compared to the high bail amounts in the state, the premium fee will be affordable for most defendants and their families. You can enter a bail repayment plan if you cannot pay the 10% all at once.
With a bail repayment plan, you can give a small percentage of the premium and pay the balance in affordable installments. The more you can raise as a down payment, the more the surety company will be compelled to accept the repayment plan.
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Provide Collateral
In addition to paying the bail bonds premium, your Alpine bail bonds service may require you to provide collateral. Bail bond collateral is an asset that a bail bondsman can sell to recover the surety company’s money if they lose the bail money in a forfeiture. The bail bonds company may ask you to provide collateral if your loved one has a history of skipping bail.
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Ensure that the Defendant Returns to Court for Trial
When you co-sign a bail bond for a loved one or friend, ensuring they attend trial falls on you. If you fail to monitor the defendant and they skip bail, you will lose the asset you offered as collateral to the surety company. If a defendant shows signs of flight after you have secured their bail bond, you can forfeit it. This allows the defendant to be taken back to jail, and you will save yourself from the bail bond forfeiture.
Immigration Bonds
If you are an immigrant in the United States, an arrest can result in detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Often, immigrants are arrested for being in the country illegally or violating California law. You can secure a release from ICE detention by securing an immigration bond.
There are two main types of immigration bonds, including:
- Delivery bond. You can be released on a delivery bond if you want to remain in the United States to fight criminal charges.
- Voluntary departure bond. If you post a voluntary departure bond, you must leave the country within a specified time. Often, a delivery bond is paid by a United States citizen and is refunded when the defendant leaves the country as scheduled.
If the ICE has detained your loved one, you will require the financial help and guidance of an immigration bail bonds service.
The Role of an Alpine Bail Bondsman in My Case
A bail bondsman works with you through the bail posting process, and their role will include the following:
Bail Bond Assessment
When you contact a surety company for assistance in securing your loved one’s release, a bail bondsman will be sent to assess your eligibility for the bail bondsman. Using the information you provide about the defendant, the bondsman can assess their flight risk and check their criminal history.
Complete the Paperwork
A bail bond is a contract between a cosigner, the bail bonds company, and the court. When the bail bondsman has determined that you qualify for the bail bond, they will prepare the paperwork to begin the bail bond process. Some of the documents you must fill out when entering the bail bond agreement include the following:
- Bail bond application. In a bail bond application document, you must indicate all information about the defendant. This includes their identification information and the jail cell where they are held.
- Promissory note. A promissory note indicates your obligation to cover all the costs associated with the bail bond.
- Terms and conditions. When offering you a bail bond, your Alpine bail bonds company will set conditions the defendant must follow while on bail. This could be an addition to the bail conditions imposed by the court.
Posting Bail
Unlike cash bail, where you must go to a court clerk to present the bail money, your bail bondsman is responsible for posting bail. After signing the bail bond agreement, what’s left will be waiting for your loved one’s release.
Contacting you for Violations
When a defendant is released on bail, they must follow certain conditions. Bail conditions are set based on the circumstances of the case. Violating the bail conditions increases the risk of bail forfeiture. The bail bondsman will contact you constantly to ensure you fulfill your obligations.
Locating a Defendant Who Skips Bail
If a criminal defendant skips bail or fails to appear for trial, the bail bondsman is responsible for finding them and returning them to court. Most bail bond services are busy posting bail and drafting bail bond contracts. Therefore, they will hire a bounty hunter to find the defendant. If a bounty hunter finds your loved one, you must cover the bounty hunter's costs.
Benefits of Hiring an Alpine Bail Bonds Service
Some of the benefits you can enjoy from hiring a bail bonds service to help you post bail include:
Save Money
Posting bail is a significant financial decision. When you post cash bail, you may drain all the family's finances and have nothing left to seek legal representation for your case. However, when you seek bail bond services, you will only be responsible for a small portion of the bail money. This will lower your financial burden.
Avoid Financial Scrutiny
When you post cash bail, the prosecution or judge can be suspicious about the bail money's source. If the court decides to perform a financial investigation on you, releasing your loved one from jail will be delayed. Additionally, law enforcement could invade your financial privacy.
Bail bond companies have the financial capacity to post large bail amounts in full.
Faster Release from Jail
No one wants to spend a minute of their life in jail. Therefore, you want to ensure a fast release. When you post cash bail, you have to go to the court and wait in line for your turn to post cash bail. On the other hand, property bonds may take a while as you navigate the hearing.
Bail bondmen understand the ins and outs of local courts. Therefore, they can easily rush to court and post bail for your loved one, ensuring a quick release.
Avoid Asset Liquidation
Watching your loved one rot behind bars is a challenging experience. You will want to do everything possible to secure their release. In an attempt to raise bail money, you could be tempted to sell some of your assets. When you post a bail bond, you can protect your assets. This is because the surety company shoulders the financial responsibility for the bond.
You Benefit from Expert Guidance
The process of posting bail is complicated when you do it alone. However, working with a bail bonds service means you will receive expert guidance to make the process easier for you and your loved one.
Bail Bondsmen Take Responsibility for the Defendant
If you post cash bail for a defendant, you must assure the court that the defendant will show up for scheduled court dates. Additionally, you must ensure that the defendant will not violate other bail conditions. If the defendant skips bail, you will lose the money in a forfeiture.
When you seek bail bond services, ensuring that a defendant does not skip bail falls on the bail bondsman. If the defendant skips bail, the court gives the bail bondsman time to find them before forfeiting the bail money.
After an arrest in Alpine, CA, you will be detained in any of these facilities:
State of California Corrections Department
San Diego County Sheriff’s Department Alpine Station
Courts serving Alpine, CA, include:
Superior Court, East County Division
Superior Court of California, County of Alpine
Find a Skilled Bail Bonds Service Near Me
Spending time in jail after an arrest can be a traumatizing experience for you and your family. Fortunately, most defendants facing criminal charges in California can secure an early release by posting bail. Bail money assures the court that you will return for your trial and court proceedings.
Failure to post bail means that you will sit behind bars until the court decides on the outcome of your case. Sitting in jail will take away time from your family and can cause you to lose your job. Unfortunately, bail amounts in California are often very high. The seriousness of your case and other circumstances determine how much you must pay for bail.
If your loved one is behind bars and you cannot afford cash bail, you can contact a bail bonds service for financial assistance and guidance. When you post a bail bond, you will only be responsible for a portion of the bail money, which can be paid in installments.
At Justice Bail Bonds, we offer fast and affordable bail bond services to all our clients facing arrest in Alpine, CA. Contact us today at 714-541-1155 to discuss your bail needs.
